


Of Privacy Invaders & Intriguing Messes

by mellow_spacebird



Category: Legacies (TV 2018)
Genre: F/F, Hope you enjoy, I Will Go Down With This Ship, I only know what google tells me about belgium, Time Jump, any belgians, belgium - Freeform, hit me up, pls be nice, this is my first fanfic
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-29
Updated: 2019-07-14
Packaged: 2020-03-26 18:32:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 12
Words: 10,501
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19011478
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mellow_spacebird/pseuds/mellow_spacebird
Summary: *Special thank you to the wonderful anon who came up with my title. You are the best! <3*(This takes place about a year after Penelope leaves and it switches perspectives quite a bit in the beginning.)Penelope park has attended Beselare School for Girls for the past year. The school is obnoxiously small and not at all dramatic enough for her liking. When a mysterious new student with a knack for privacy charms shows up, Penelope will stop at nothing to uncover their identity. Will she like what she finds?Meanwhile, Alaric finds an ancient text suggesting that the merge might be averted if the twins separate. It's a long shot, but Josie agrees to join her mother in Europe, where she will attend an all-witches school until it is safe for her to return to Salvatore.This is my first fanfic, so I would appreciate any feedback you have, whether it be positive or negative. Anyway, enjoy!





	1. And so it begins...

**Author's Note:**

> Hello, my lovely people! As I noted in the summary, this is my first fanfic. I would love to hear your opinions, comments, questions, concerns, hopes, dreams, wishes--whatever :)  
> I will be posting in short-ish chapters and I have no f-ing clue how long this is going to end up being.  
> Please enjoy my lucky charms-fuelled midnight writing extravaganza!

(Penelope)

 

“There’s a new student in the upper school,” one of the young witches tittered from across the room.

Penelope’s head snapped up from her textbook upon hearing the new information. Beselare School for Girls hadn’t had a new student since June. 

It wouldn’t have been a problem back at Salvatore, but Beselare was so dreadfully small; Penelope only had ten witches in her level and the rest were mostly younger. She learned early on that the majority of Belgian magical bloodlines prefer to homeschool their children from the end of secondary school to adulthood as a means of ensuring the continuity of family and coven traditions.

Shaking herself from her thoughts, Penelope strained to hear more of the conversation.

“… from America.”  
“Emma met her this morning. She says she’s really nice.”  
“Oh, good! Most of the older witches are so dour…”

This last comment rankled Penelope, but she had gotten the information she wanted. Besides, there was a no-hexing rule in the library and the chattering witches were only fourth years. With a flick of her wrist, she sent the dusty tome before her slamming shut and whisking itself off to a shelf on the back wall. Marching back to her room weighing the benefits of different eavesdropping spells, Penelope buzzed with an excitement she hadn’t felt in weeks. The game was afoot.

—

(Josie - two days prior )

It was rough leaving for Europe. On the one hand, Josie’s mother would be there to pick her up. On the other hand, her sister and father had stayed behind at Salvatore. She didn’t know when she would see either of them again, except through videochat. The move was as painful as it was necessary.

According to her father’s research, separating Josie and Lizzie might weaken the merge and potentially even stop it altogether. He didn’t know for sure; it was only mentioned once in sparse detail and the Gemini Coven had not always been scrupulous in their record-keeping. So, on the basis of a mere sentence of information, the family made travel arrangements. Lizzie wanted to stay, so Josie left.

Josie had also wanted to stay at Salvatore—she would miss Hope, MJ, Raf, her father—but she didn’t want to start a fight. She also recognized that Lizzie had little waiting for her abroad. Josie, on the other hand, had Penelope, or thought she did; the two hadn’t spoken or written since that last night.

Josie ran a hand over the red journal Penelope had given her. The spine protruded from her overstuffed backpack, which sat on the train seat beside her. The notebook still recorded everything Penelope’s enchanted pens had written. During the train trip from Paris to her mother’s home in West Flanders, she flipped through the smooth, ink-stained pages: The first time Hope wrote about Landon, One of the times Lizzie felt grateful to have Josie there to calm her down. Josie read all of it, up until the purple ribbon that marked the day Penelope left.

Josie had never read past that day. She knew there was writing beyond it from the grey blur she saw when the book fluttered open in her lap. It just seemed… wrong; it hurt. Penelope was the one that enjoyed reading other people’s private thoughts, not Josie, and Penelope was out of her life indefinitely.


	2. The second one.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A really short one. Sry, not sry. Josie POV

Josie’s mother’s house was not particularly homey. A sparse blue two-story in the middle of nowhere, it was far too large for two people. Voices echoed, stairs creaked, meticulously-posed photos lined the halls. Josie hadn’t been back since she was little, which only added to the hollow foreignness she felt shrouded in the house’s darkness.

“So nice to see you, Josette,” her mother greeted warmly, embracing Josie, who reciprocated the embrace with lacking enthusiasm. “I know this is a difficult transition, sweetie. But you are so, so brave for being the one to come to Europe.”

“I know, Mom. I know.” It was the only thing Josie felt capable of saying.

“Don’t worry about anything. We’ve got this all under control. I’ve already registered you at your new school and I think you are just going to love it!” Her mother’s bright-pink lips split into a wide grin. “It’s an all-witches school and it’s renowned through all of Belgium. You are going to have so many wonderful opportunities!”

At this, Josie cracked a tentative smile. Her mother’s enthusiasm was highly transmissible.

“There’s my girl,” she continued. “You’ll move in tomorrow and start the following day, assuming all goes well. I’ll visit on weekends when I can.”

“Mhm, okay. Thanks again, Mom,” Josie mumbled and started off towards one of the empty bedrooms. She felt slightly less down-hearted than before, but how was she supposed to do this without Lizzie? How was Lizzie supposed to do this without her? Would Josie even like going to an all-witches school? She didn’t even consider that Penelope might be there.


	3. An ocean away

(Penelope - present)

It has been two days. Two, whole f-ing days since rumors of the new witch first started. Ever since that day in the library, Penelope has tried—really tried—to not obsess over the mystery-American who somehow seems eavesdrop-proof. Despite her best efforts, the only information to trickle in has been from third-party sources. Everyone seems to have met this new student but her. She finds it infuriating.

The worst part, though—the. worst. part. is that Penelope doesn’t even have her name. Whispers always refer to her as “the new witch” or “her”. From what Penelope has gathered she is very kind, but usually reclusive. She is the same year as Penelope. She attends classes above the usual level for her age group. She eats in her room, studies in her room, rarely leaves her room, sometimes skips classes.

Penelope’s best guess is that the new witch cast a privacy charm on herself. They’re fairly common among adult witches, but rarely used by teenagers. Penelope maintains one on herself, of course. Far be it from her to fall prey to the eavesdropping of others, but it’s unusual for another student to be so thoroughly guarded.

Privacy charms vary in scope and effectiveness. The spell the new witch seems to employ is the same as Penelope’s own. It prevents eavesdropping and redacts all mentions of the caster’s name except to any person to whom the caster has introduced themself. Penelope can’t listen to her conversations or figure out her name, and they have literally not a single class together.

So Penelope sulks in the back of Magizoology as several young brownies attempt to braid her hair. The key word is attempt; Penelope knows her dark locks will be tangled for days, but she has developed a soft spot for the small, humanoid creatures. It is at that moment that a slightly-insane-but-excellent idea presents itself to her. The idea is this: Brownies sneak into homes at night to complete household chores; they would never spy on someone for Penelope, but if she could convince them that the new student needed help settling in, perhaps they might bring back some information as a sort of progress report; older brownies would never fall for this, but perhaps the younger ones would. Extremely pleased with herself, a smug, devious grin stretched across Penelope’s face..

—  
(Josie - present)

Beselare wasn’t the worst place Josie could imagine living. It wasn’t Salvatore, but it also wasn’t terrible. She had been here four days, now, and had settled into her classes quite nicely. Her extensive experience with werewolves, vampires, and the like, as well as her status as a descendant of the rare Gemini coven had allowed her to enter some of the more advanced courses offered by the school. 

Her classmates and teachers alike seemed enthralled with her ability to syphon energy. It amazed the younger witches, especially; most of whom had no idea that a bowl of mini wheats contains enough magical energy to shatter a window at two hundred yards. It is the breakfast of champions for a reason, Josie had snarked in her head.

So Beselare was okay. Despite a warm welcome from most of the students, Josie spent most of her time tucked away in her attic room. She liked it for its quietude. It was surrounded by storage rooms—the kind that no one ever goes into and most don’t know exist—and she was the only person on her floor. A magnificent floor to ceiling window overlooked the large pond behind the school and the gently-drooping willow trees that surrounded it. If Josie was lucky, sometimes she would see one of the pygmy mermaids swim to the surface to feel the warmth of the sun or to discard an empty shell.

Josie spent most of her days like this, studying at her desk, occasionally glancing at the pond, hoping to see a mermaid. It was peaceful, but she was struggling; a blight of persistent homesickness clouded her sunny demeanor. She missed Salvatore: the school itself, the classes, the people--even the random monsters that showed up once in a while. It was hard to make friends when the only friends she wanted were an ocean away.


	4. Welcome Brownies

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I realise the previous chapters have been a lot of exposition. This one is not. Things happen--exciting things. As always, thank you for reading! I would love any feedback you may have for me, including ideas for future plot points, if there is something you would really like to read. I aim to please :)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Penelope POV

"Psst... PSSSSSST... Liam, Mila, Elise?! Where are you guys?" Penelope stage whispered. She sat crouched in a dark corner of the library where the brownies liked to hang out. They were finicky creatures and didn't always come when called, but Penelope was feeling lucky. The fact that she snuck in some waffles and ice cream had absolutely nothing to do with it. She placed the plate on the floor anyway, just in case.

Soon she heard the telltale tumble of small hands and feet scrabbling over books and hopping between shelves. It was only a matter of time before the three pint-sized brownies stood before her.

"Glad you could make it," Penelope grinned wryly. "I may have brought you something."

The three imps stared greedily at the plate by Penelope's feet.

"For us?"  
"For us!"  
"For us?!", they chorused in their high-pitched, squeaky voices.

"Yes, for you. You're welcome."

No sooner had Penelope said that, than the three wannabe garden gnomes dug in. One might get the impression that they hadn't eaten for days. (They had.) It was like piranhas cleaning a carcass. And when they were done, the plate was cleaner and shinier than bone china.

"Mmmm, thankth," chirped Elise, mouth still full of waffle.

"Again, you're welcome. It was the least I could do; I need to ask you a favor," Penelope began. "There's a new student here. I don't know her name. But she hasn't been attending some of her classes and I think she just moved from America. She might need help settling in..." Penelope gave them a pointed stare, as if to imply 'could you please go and check on her out of the goodness of your hearts?' Several seconds of silence and she thought she had almost won them over.

She had not.

"What's in it for us?" haggled Liam.

Penelope bit back a scathing retort. She had just brought them waffles. Waffles AND ICE CREAM. Most students didn't even acknowledge the brownies, let alone bring them treats.

She sighed heavily, "Alright, Snap, Crackle, and Pop, what is it you want in return?"

Their three pint-sized faces scrunched in thought. It was adorable, but Penelope would never tell them that; their egos were bigger than most humans.

"Ummmmmmmm... I would like forty waffles," said Liam.  
"Aaaaaand... I get to braid your hair whenever I want," added Mila.  
"Mmmmmm... How 'bout a piggy back ride?" finished Elise.

As devious and demanding as the brownies were, it was easy for Penelope to forget that they were still children. And while those demands were easily met, Penelope made a show of being torn--as if she didn't know whether the requests were 'do-able'. No sense in paying the full price when she could get a bargain.

"Fine... Thirty waffles!"  
"...Once a day!"  
"... I still wanna piggy back ride, please!", they caved.

"You drive a hard bargain, but I suppose it's a deal." Penelope shook each of their tiny hands with her index finger. "Just, go check on her, alright? And let me know if there's anything I can do to help."

While the three imps scattered like mice, Penelope picked up the sparkling plate. All the way back to the dining hall, she grinned like the cat who got the canary. 'It's working.'


	5. In Which Things Go Missing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Josie can't find her favorite pen. I wonder why...

It was Tuesday. Rain pelted the window panes with alarming intensity. Josie was late to History of Incantations. She scrambled around her room in search of her favorite pen, tearing the covers off her bed, rifling through drawers, checking the pockets of every jacket she owned. No luck.

It was a special pen, like the ones that collected gossip in the red journal. This writing of this pen, however, accumulated in a blue notebook. It's how Josie kept all of her notes together. Besides, Penelope had given it to Josie for one of her birthdays, so it had sentimental value.

"WHERE is it?!" Josie huffed, slouching against the door. "Think, Josie, THINK. You had it yesterday. You put it on your desk. Where could it POSSIBLY have gone?" She slid down to a seated position and rested her face on her knees.

Josie's belongings had been going missing all week. The pen was just the first one worth searching for. First, it had been paperclips and other small possessions, the kind scattered at the bottom of drawers--easily found, despite their haphazard lack of organization. Next, some socks had gone missing. Josie assumed she had just forgotten them after P.E. or left them in the laundry. They showed up in her wardrobe, neatly folded, the next day. Soon, items running the gambit from pencils to potion's textbooks were popping up in different places or missing altogether.

Josie chocked it up to her scatterbrained nature: Organised for everyone else, but a mess when it came to herself. But now, the pen. It was the last straw. She was already thirty minutes late to the lecture, so she decided to just skip it and get the notes from a classmate. It wasn't like she had been attending most of her classes anyway; what was one more absence going to do? Kill her? She thought not.

So she settled on going back to bed, curling up under her fluffy, leaf-patterned duvet, and hoping that she would remember where she put the pen when she woke up.

\---

By the time Josie woke, bleary-eyed, dusk had fallen. She didn't want to get up, but the downside of taking an afternoon nap was that Josie was no longer tired. Rolling onto her side, she slowly opened her eyes. A blur of movement on top of her desk immediately caught her attention. Several bats had already gotten into her room from their roost down the hall. It was probably another one. 'Dumb bats, why couldn't they just stay out? It's not even that hard.'

But as soon as Josie sat up to escort the confused bat back out into the hall, she saw two more blurs--one in her sock drawer, the other exiting her closet. Definitely not bats. When they saw her, they froze. Three E.T. lookalikes clothed in loose white tunics. One held her pen. A second had its head stuck inside a sock. The third wore a paperclip-chain necklace with matching paperclip earrings. The sight was almost comical. Almost.

"What are you doing here?!" shrieked Josie. "Why are you in my room? Why do you have my pen? And who ARE you?"

The pen-holding extraterrestrial muttered something that sounded suspiciously like "shit" and eyed the others with an expression of panic.

Josie simply raised an eyebrow, a trick she had learned from Penelope. "Well?"

The creature huffed. "First, we are organising, cleaning, housekeeping, if you will."

"We heard you were new an' came t'check on you," added the one inside the sock.

"I put the pen in your boot, but since you couldn't find it, 'figured I'd move it," continued the first.

"And WE are brownies. If anything, you should be thanking us," rejoined Paperclip.

With a hand to her temple, Josie lamented the situation. "Goddammit, why ME?" she muttered. "Okay, so you're brownies and you clean stuff. That checks out. But why are you in MY room? Like, of all the disastrous storage rooms on this floor, why did you pick MY bedroom? Surely there are better uses of your time and energy, yes?"

The brownies seem stunned at her sudden acceptance of their life's purpose, but when they recovered, they realised that they couldn't possibly rat out Penelope. It would mean no waffles--no braiding--no PIGGY BACK RIDES! So they settled on a lie of omission.

"One of the girls in your year sent us."

"She was worried about how you were settling in."

"Wanted us to help."

"Who was it? What was her name?" Josie demanded. Eyes narrowed, she waited for them to spill the beans.

"..."

"..."

"Uhh... she doesn't have one?" shrugged Elise, still shoulder deep in one of Josie's purple socks.

"Mmm, sure." Josie snarked. "If you're not going to tell me, I'll just have to find out some other way... Pens, Sockie, Paperclip, I've got a mission for you."

"And what if we don't accept?" Liam challenged.

"Oh, you'll accept, or would you rather I bring you to the bat room for the night?" Josie smirked. "Thought so. Now, here's what I need you to do..."


	6. A Return Favour

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Josie has a little fun. Perhaps a little more than she bargained for :)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It was hard coming up with this chapter, so I hope it lives up to all of your expectations. The latin incantation is almost total bs. Anyway, I'm a messy b*tch who craves drama, so buckle your seatbelts because the next few chapters are going to get a little crazy.
> 
> Happy reading, my lovely people!!! :) <3

(THREE DAYS LATER)

"Nice," Josie chuckled, toying with the hair tie that just appeared on her desk.

Josie had been in a better mood ever since the Brownies delivered her note and she had just had three of the best days, possibly in her entire life. On the surface, the note appeared as a run of the mill "Thank You". Josie had filled it with pleasantries and gratefulness, none of which were genuine. Josie had also filled the note with an incantation: "Quel ha perditem, revertetur ad me." Essentially, whatever one loses, it gets magically returned to Josie.

This was a variation of a forget-me-not spell Josie used to put on her school supplies back at Salvator; change 'ho' to 'ha', and Josie figured the enchantment would bring her other people's stuff easily enough. Well, she was correct. For the past three days, Josie had come into possession of everything from pens to a beat-up Herbology textbook (and also a bajillion hair ties.) Even better, everything belonged to the witch who sicked those three semi-incompetent brownies on her. Homesickness was fomenting a wicked streak in Josie.

She placed the hair tie in one of her drawers along with all of the other 'missing' items. So far, nothing with a name on it, but not a total loss.

Picking up her favorite pen, the blue notebook, and her copy of Coven Politics: A History of the Hidden World, Josie floated off to her next class. 

"Hello, Professor LaSalle," Josie greeted her middle-aged instructor, slipping in just as she was shutting the door to begin.

"Hello, Josette," the woman smiled. It was kind, but didn't reach her eyes. "So nice of you to join us. Today, I plan on discussing the origins of the Gemini Coven. Maybe you would demonstrate siphoning at the end of the lesson? Humor us?" 

Josie shrugged noncommittally and made her way to a desk in the far corner. She was tired of being everyone's one-trick pony; she knew the professor was trying to include her--celebrate her unique lineage, but it only made Josie feel more out of place than she already was. 

That said, Josie had become friendly with some of her classmates. As she sat down, Emma and Louise greeted her ecstatically. The two girls were twins, much like herself and Lizzie, but identical and very, very blonde. Em and Louise had gone to Beselare their whole lives and it was no exaggeration to say that they ran the school's gossip mill. They were almost literally BUZZING with excitement today, which meant they had news.

"You will NEVER believe what has been happening!" started Louise.

"Yes! So there's this one witch in our level--I don't think you've met her yet--anyway, we call her Sour," added Emma.

"So Sour (we named her because of her attitude, obvs) has been losing things left and right." continued Louise.

"She even lost the Herbology textbook! Can you believe it?" cheered Emma.

Josie attempted to feign surprise, but it dissolved into giggles. "I may or may not know a little something about that already..." Josie cringed. Just because she was turning over a new leaf with her attitude didn't mean she wanted the whole school to find out about her transgressions. But the cat was out of the bag.

"You canNOT end that sentence there," emphasised Louise.

"It's practically ILLEGAL," chirped Emma, nodding seriously.

"Ugh, fine. So some random witch sent these baby brownies to help me settle in," Josie started.

"That seems so nice," crooned Louise.

"Well, yes, but the point is they hid all my stuff in the most random places and made my life a living hell," exaggerated Josie. It was fun being so dramatic; without Lizzie, someone needed to do it--call this community service. "So I sent a thank you note."

Both Em and Louise sighed. 

"Well, don't just stop there! Get to the juicy part!" they urged.

"BUT, I may or may not have enchanted the note to return everything she loses to my desk andIkindahaveallofherstuffwhatdoIdowithit?" Josie rushed out in one breath, then cringed. It sounded worse out loud.

"Damn, Josie! Didn't know you had it in you," Emma clapped Josie on the back, while Louise feigned a tip of the hat.

Still sitting, Josie bowed lavishly, "Thank you, thank you. You're too kind."

\---

The rest of Coven History passed in a blur. Professor LaSalle prattled on about Josie's coven. Josie siphoned energy from the chalkboard and used it to make the chalk write by itself. There were oohs and awes. Emma and Louise bickered about whether 'finders-keepers' applies in the situation with 'Sour' and reminded her to keep them updated on any interesting items that showed up. The class was nothing spectacular, which is why Josie usually didn't bother attending.

Stacking her books under one arm, Josie made for the dining hall. It was the first sunny day in a week and she planned to bring a picnic lunch to the mermaid pond.

As magical as Beselare was, they still served lunch buffet-style. If Josie asked nicely, she could usually take her meals to-go. So she stepped into the line.

"Hi, Melanie," Josie greeted the tall brunette ahead of her. Melanie was a year older than Josie and came from Southern France. They had a few classes together and were familiar enough to exchange small talk.

"Josie! How are you today?" enthused Melanie. "I didn't see you in Potions yesterday. Thought maybe you were ill."

"Oh, uh, no--I mean, I wasn't ill, I'm just still settling in, you know? It's kind of a hard transition," Josie explained. Something about the kindness in Melanie's eyes made Josie feel the need to apologise, as if Melanie was the Potions professor instead of another student.

"It'll be okay--Oh! That reminds me: Someone in the Transfiguration lab lost a rabbit. Just, keep an eye out for it, will you? I've been telling everyone, just in--Are you okay?"

Josie's eyes were as big as saucers. Her face was slack. It would have looked like a stroke if Josie hadn't been muttering, "Oh fuck, fuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuck. IgottagoI'mfinethanksfortellingmeabouttherabbit!"

All the way back to her room, Josie took the stairs three at a time, praying that when she opened the door there would not be a rabbit sitting on her desk.

\---

"BROWNIES!!! COME ON, WHERE ARE YOU??? I HAVE ANOTHER LETTER FOR YOU TO DELIVER!!!" Josie hollered into the ether of her room.

The letter read:

Dear Anonymous Well-Wisher,

This has been fun, hasn't it? Consider it payback for the welcome brownies.  
That said, I kinda, sorta have your rabbit; can you come get him? I'm not ready to be a parent.  
I also may or may not have everything you've lost in the past three days (which is a lot, by the way.)

Whenever you get a chance (SOON), my room is the only one in the attic.  
Stop by and get your rabbit. PLEASE. He's cute, but he's eating EVERYTHING I OWN.

Best,

The New Witch


	7. Where Is All My Sh*t?!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The previous chapter, but from Penelope's POV

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know you all are anxious for their meeting, buuuuut it's not gonna happen just yet. I figured I would include Penelope's point of view for no other reason than because it's hilarious :)
> 
> Also, I was gonna name the herbology professor something like Professor Leif or Professor Arbor, but that was too derivative, so I made him look like Walt Whitman (who wrote Leaves of Grass). All the other authors can kneel before my superior intellect lol.
> 
> Happy reading, my lovely people!!! :) <3

Penelope thought the last three days had been the longest of her entire life. Honestly, she'd take one of Salvatore's monsters over whatever curse she had incurred. Almost all of her school supplies were missing, she couldn't find her Herbology textbook, and she had not a SINGLE HAIR TIE LEFT. It was absolute and utter lunacy!

Today, alone, Penelope had gotten a lecture from Professor Mason (Herbology) on the importance of neatness. He was by far one of the most relaxed professors, but it was unpleasant nonetheless.

"You must care for your possessions, young Park," he preached. "Sooner or later you will lose something that actually matters."

Thankfully, she received no demerits; her textbook would show up sooner or later, the balding, white-bearded man had told her. Now that Penelope thought about it, he looked suspiciously like Walt Whitman.

After that, Penelope rushed off to Transfigurations Lab. The other witches tittered among themselves as she passed. Penelope was sock-less, backpack-less, and wild-haired, owing to the disappearance of her hairbrush. She knew her peers didn't like her much, but it was absolutely miserable to play right into their hands.

"Hey, Sour!" taunted Louise, "What's wrong? Missing something?"

"Wouldn't you like to know, Malibu Barbie?" Penelope responded. A collective "Oooooooohhh" rose in the hall. Penelope didn't rise to the challenge, though. She knew the twins weren't smart enough to pull off something like what was happening to her.

So Penelope jogged the rest of the way to Transfigurations, dropping her single remaining pen and notebook on a table in the back and perching on one of the rickety stools.

"Al-right, class!" began Professor Jansen, setting a shrouded cage in the middle of her desk. "Today, we are moving on to something significantly more difficult. You've heard of Harry Potter, when they turn the rat into a cup, yes? Well, this class, we will be learning how to turn a rabbit into a rat." She whisked the cage's covering off with dramatic flair. "Now everyone, come up and select your rabbits."

Penelope got last pick, so she was stuck with the 'off' one. Her rabbit was white with black spots and creepy, blood-red eyes. It reminded her of that book Bunnicula from her childhood. Creepy little bastard--a little cross-eyed, too.

"God really did you dirty, huh?" Penelope murmured, stroking the rabbit's small, misshapen ears.

"Alrighty, then! Everyone have their rabbit? Good, good," announced the professor. "Now, place them on your lab tables and try not to let them run off. You are responsible for them for the rest of term, understand?" 

Then, Professor Jansen turned to the board and began diagramming the various ways in which one could transfigure a rabbit; Potions, incantations, etc., it was all very boring to Penelope. She amused herself with feeding Igor, as she had named the bunny, literally anything she could find: various herbs, eye of newt, wing of bat, notebook paper, a pencil eraser, her lab partner's protein bar (which Penelope had 'borrowed' for 'scientific purposes'). Somewhere along the way, Penelope got a bit careless, and Igor, too enthusiastic. Her finger brushed his whiskers and he chomped down HARD.

"OW, SON OF A BITCH!" She yelped, clutching her hand.

"Language, Ms. Park! This, class, is why we must be careful around our furry charges. I apologise for not warning you earlier; that one's a biter," spoke Professor Jansen.

Everyone in the class turned to look at Penelope. She could feel her face turning red. This had been the worst day and it now seemed that whatever higher power did or didn't exist was thoroughly out to smite her. Seconds stretched into an eternity before Professor Jansen resumed teaching. When Penelope glanced back down, Igor was nowhere to be seen.

"Oh, fuckfuckfuckfuckfuck. This cannot be happening," Penelope pleaded, frantically scanning the room for 'that little bastard'. She couldn't see him anywhere. "He must have absconded down the hall. Fuck."

She grabbed her pen and notebook and raced out the door, hollering something about taking care of her finger before she got rabies. That damn rabbit would come to rue the day, if it was the last thing Penelope did.

\---

(4 INSANELY UNPLEASANT HOURS LATER)

Penelope flopped face-down onto her bed. The phrase, "Have you seen a black and white, weird-looking rabbit?" felt permanently seared into the folds of her brain.

"It's over. I'm gonna fail," she moped. "Stupid rabbit. Stupid fucking losing things. Goddammit, why is this happening?!"

"Umm... sorry to interrupt," interrupted Mila, standing tentatively in the doorway. She held a folded piece of paper almost as tall as herself.

Penelope glanced up, "No, no, what is it?"

"Here," Mila offered it, "It's from the new witch."

Penelope gingerly accepted the letter and thanked Mila, who left to do whatever it is brownies do when they're not helping people. Perching crosslegged at the foot of her bed, Penelope read, then re-read the letter. She was suddenly overcome by a great calm.

"All is not lost, it seems. I'm gonna go get my stuff and then I'm going to end her." Penelope said it with a smile on her face.


	8. *shocked silence*

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You all know what chapter this is... they meet. It doesn't go quite as expected. Y'all know I love drama...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I adore reading your comments and hearing your opinions. Thank you so much, all of you!!! You truly are the best!
> 
> Happy reading, my lovely people!!! :) <3

(The Next Morning)

"Hey! You in there! You have my fucked-up rabbit!," Penelope shouted, rapping aggressively on the door before her. "I'm not sure I WANT the little bastard back, but I definitely NEED him back, so anytime you feel like opening the door would be great..."

Penelope had been knocking the whole time she spoke--frustratingly, with no response--so she trailed off. 

'OF COURSE she's not here... well, fuck.'

Penelope settled on sitting with her back against the door frame. She would wait as long as it took. Transfig Lab was going to meet again this morning and an absence seemed better than 'sorry, I lost my goddamn rabbit-my only frickin' responsibility.'

She sat. She waited. She waited some more. 

\---

(Josie's POV)

The mermaids were surprisingly friendly and they LOVED Josie. She had brought the rabbit down to the pond for a visit, since she didn't get to picnic yesterday, and the mermaids were instantly taken with the two of them. They had never actually seen a rabbit before.

"This... rabbit, as you say, what does it do, exactly?" questioned Seline. She was the boldest of the mermaids and orange-haired with silver scales. If Josie had to guess, they were about the same age.

Josie chuckled, "It doesn't 'do' anything really. Eats grass, hops around." She raised her right hand, wincing slightly. "This one has a particularly nasty bite."

Seline gasped, drawing back. She looked positively horrified. Around her, several other mermaids began examining the rabbit--deemed Mr. Hopkins by Josie--with renewed interest.

"It bites?" Melodie asked.

"Only sometimes. He's a bit finicky."

"Fascinating."

Josie held Mr. Hopkins out from where she was sitting and each of the mermaids took turns petting him. Some flinched, others yelped, the bravest gave him a nose-boop. Josie laughed the whole time.

'To think they've never seen a rabbit before and now they think all rabbits are like this one,' mused Josie. 'I should probably get back to my room in case the other witch shows up.'

"It's been fun, friends," Josie parted, "but I have a prior engagement."

As Josie began to pack up her things, Seline volunteered to hold Mr. Hopkins. The mermaid was either having the best or the worst day of her life, judging by the width of her eyes.

"Come back soon!"  
"We loved meeting you!"  
"Bring another creature from your world!"

Josie waved over her shoulder at the cheery cluster.

"I will! Likewise! I'll have to see about that!"

"It's time to get you home, little buddy," she whispered sweetly to Mr. Hopkins and headed towards the main building.

\---

'Looks like I missed them or they haven't shown up yet.'

\---

(Penelope's POV)

Waiting at the new witch's door had gotten old real fast. Penelope wondered where someone who almost never attended classes could possibly be, if not in their room. Eventually, boredom became hunger. Penelope figured a snack break couldn't hurt.

\---

When Penelope returned to the attic, satiated and with a spare chocolate croissant in one hand, there was definitely someone in the room. From the bumps and crashes, she could only assume they were trying to wrangle Igor. Penelope chuckled. Then she remembered that it would soon be her wrangling Igor and suddenly, it became less funny.

Penelope knocked softly at first, then harder when no-one came to the door.

"Just a minute," a muffled voice called through the door. 

It sounded kind of like--but that couldn't be; Penelope knew better. Josie hadn't responded to any of her letters. Penelope had written them with one of the red-journal pens, figuring that Josie would be able to read what she wrote an ocean away. After the first five or six letters, Penelope had stopped writing. Josie hadn't answered a single one of them. As much as it hurt to accept, Josie probably didn't care about her anymore. 

Penelope shoved down all of her feelings, packing them up into a small little box where she could ignore them for the rest of eternity. She flicked an errant tear from the corner of her eye.

'It's time to get the rabbit and go,' she thought.

"Coming! Coming!" the other voice hollered, slightly less-muffled than before. Penelope could swear it was Josie, but that wasn't possible. She must be experiencing auditory hallucinations from the stress of losing almost everything she owns.

Then the round brass doorknob turned and the door opened and--

"Jojo" Penelope gasped. She felt all the air vanish from her lungs. 

Josie, for her part, seemed equally stunned; her jaw worked silently in lieu of forming a coherent thought. She was holding Igor, but had nearly dropped him.

Igor seemed fine--even a bit more chipper than yesterday, in Penelope's opinion.

Penelope grabbed the rabbit, careful not to brush fingers with Josie.

"I'msorry, Ican'tbehererightnow.ThanksforreturningIgor," Penelope rushed, fighting tears, and hurried to the stairs. Josie stood wide-eyed in the doorway.

\---

Safely back in her room, Penelope placed Igor in his enchanted (escape-proof) pen and slumped at her desk.

Head cradled in her hands, burning tears dripped onto the desk's worn maple surface.


	9. Processing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Josie puzzles over Penny's reaction. Another visit to the mermaid pond :) Some exposition for the next chapter :)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I'm finally updating this. I took a week to think about how I wanted to write this chapter because I wanted to do right by the characters and find the right approach.
> 
> Any and all spell are total bs--not latin, just latin-ish.
> 
> Happy reading, my lovely people :) <3

'Is a year really that long of a time?' Josie mused. 'Maybe that's why she didn't write."

Josie was splayed out on the grass near the mermaid pond. No blanket, just grass.

"You look like a starfish," commented Selene in lieu of hello. The mermaid swam up to Josie and leaned over the edge of the pond.

"Mmm?" responded Josie.

"You seem sad. What's going on? Is the rabbit okay?"

Josie sighed, "He's fine, it's his owner that's got me worried."

The mermaid's slightly perplexed expression prompted Josie to explain.

"The rabbit isn't mine--but actually, let me start from the beginning. I went to a school like this one but in America. We also had werewolf and vampire students, but that's beside the point." 

Selene leaned forward, intrigued. 

"My father is the headmaster and me and my twin sister, Lizzie, went there. Buuuuuut, my sister and I are part of the Gemini coven, which is known for having twins, but it also has this thing called the merge.

"The merge--I just learned about it recently, so I don't know everything--but it's kind of like reabsorbing your twin in the womb, but like when you're twenty-one. Essentially, whichever twin is more 'dominant' is the one who gets the body, or survives, or wins?" Josie shrugs. "I don't really know."

Selene's face was a mixture of horror and curiosity. Josie continued.

"My dad found an old Gemini coven text that mentioned a possible way to avoid the merge. If Lizzie and I separate, the merge might be weakened or stopped altogether. So, I came here to Belgium to live with my mom and Lizzie stayed in America at Salvatore with our dad.

"When I got here to Beselare, some of my things went missing. At first it was small stuff, but then my favorite pen got 'lost'--well, I thought it was lost. Another witch sent some juvenile brownies to help me settle in. It was a nice sentiment, but I was mad that they kept moving my stuff and leaving it in weird places, so I got them to bring an enchanted letter to whomever sent them."

The mermaid gave an appreciative 'ooh'. Mermaids love drama.

Josie laughed and her expression lightened for the first time since Penelope ran off.

"Yes, so I sent her the letter. I made it out to be a 'thank you' card, but I enchanted it with a returning spell; anything she loses--or even misplaces--after receiving the letter automatically returns to me. I received quite a collection, including the rabbit. He was fun while I had him."

Selene nodded in agreement; the rabbit was pretty great.

"After I met you all yesterday," Josie gestured lazily to the pond, still lying prone on the grass, "I took him back to return him. I sent the witch another letter lifting the enchantment and explaining everything because the rabbit needed to go home. So, she came to my room to get the rabbit and it was my ex-girlfriend.

"Penelope, my ex-girlfriend--not ex in a bad way, it's just a little complicated. She just stands there. I mean, I did, too," Josie gestured vaguely, "but she looks like she's going to cry and not in a positive, happy-to-see you kind of way. More like a hurt puppy. And it broke my heart.

"I wanted to ask what was wrong, or what I did, or say anything, really, but my brain just short-circuited because seeing her, here, and I just missed her so much. I hadn't heard from her in a year. I figured she would have written or something but she didn't and I wanted to give her space to figure things out in her new life, if that was the reason. I just... I guess I didn't want to hold her back or keep her from settling in here in Belgium... So, yeah. She just took the rabbit and ran and I didn't know what to do, so I came here."

A sweet silence descended over the pair. Josie felt relieved to have someone to talk to about the situation. Selene remained in thoughtful repose. A light breeze ruffled the grass. Small birds chirped. Small clusters of younger witches continued to play under the willows, creating a buffer of ambient noise, seemingly to the rest of the universe. It was an otherwise lovely day and a terrible day to be sad.

Still deep in thought, Josie siphoned magic from the grass and with a twirl of her wrist, shaped some of the fluffy, intermittent clouds into rabbits. The younger witches and Selene, alike, gasped with glee. Even in sadness, Josie seemed to make everyone around her happy.

Minutes or hours later--Josie couldn't tell--Selene spoke up.

"I've been thinking," she began, "about you and Penelope. And I have an idea--two, actually. First is that you could go talk to her, see what's wrong, do what you can to fix it. The second is that maybe she did send you a letter--maybe you didn't receive it, it got lost. She might think you're upset with her--that you didn't write back, that you knew she was here and didn't make an effort to see her."

It hit Josie suddenly. Her eyes widened and she sat up faster than humanly possible. 

"YOU are a GENIUS. Thankyouthankyouthankyou. I have to go!" Josie rushed out, hopping to her feet. She turned and ran inside so fast she didn't see the surprised, then self-satisfied expressions that graced Selene's face.

\---

Josie rooted through the drawers of her desk, wishing, just a little bit, that she had accepted the brownies' help. It was a pain to be disorganised when she needed to find something.

"Aha!" Josie excavated the red journal from under a pile of miscellaneous papers.

She hurriedly flipped to the purple ribbon--the section from after Penelope left. It felt like a long shot, but maybe Penelope had brought one of the pens with her. Maybe Penelope had written letters in the red journal and assumed Josie would read them.

Josie flipped through the first few pages. Hope. Lizzie. More Lizzie. MG. More Hope. Lizzie again. Then on the next spread, Penelope's careful, curved handwriting. Josie felt both incredibly excited and massively guilty.

"Hey Jojo,

I'm in Belgium now (obviously). It's not terrible, which is cool. I hope things are going well with Lizzie. I mean, I know I was a bitch to her and kind of dropped a bombshell on you, but I meant well. She writes a lot about you in this journal--nicer things than I think she's ever said in her entire life--and I thought you might like to read it. Anyway, I've got to go move in to the new school.

Miss you,  
-P"

The next letter is from two weeks later.

"Jojo,

I'm tempted to say settling into the new school is going well so you won't worry, but I can't lie to you. It's smaller than I expected and a lot of the other girls are like Lizzie--no offence. Fitting in has been like mixing oil with water. 

The grounds are gorgeous, though. The school has more land than even Salvatore. I think you would really like the mermaid pond--Yes, actual mermaids. Crazy, right?

Miss you,  
-P"

Josie pored over the rest of the brief letters--six in total. The last one just read, "Jojo, are you still there? -P". It was from four months ago. 

Josie felt terrible, horrible--the worst. She wondered if these were the sort of sins people go to hell for. It felt like they were. Josie had to make this right. She felt so deeply sorry it seemed to emanate from her very bones. Each letter was followed by a blank page. Josie figured that was how she was supposed to respond, so she pulled out a pen and started writing.

\---  
(Penelope's POV)

Penelope had spent the rest of the day in her room. She exhausted herself crying then fell asleep at her desk, waking in the late afternoon to rabbit-shaped clouds and a new entry in the blank journal she kept on her desk.

"Penny,

I would never hurt you on purpose. I swear it.  
Meet me on the lawn at seven and I'll explain everything.

-Jojo"

Small, wet circles dotted the paper, ruffling it slightly.


	10. Take a Walk (With Me)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jojo and Penny take a walk. A nice, fluffy chapter for you all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My favorite chapter so far! It's a short one, but I love it. I kind of rushed bc it's 3 am and I'm sleepy, so any suggestions for potential edits would be welcome (they always are!) I absolutely ADORE hearing what you guys think of the story so far <3
> 
> That said, enjoy this fluff because I think I'm going to introduce major plot next chapter. There's gonna be *drama* and *danger* and *evil* and *angst*, so buckle up! I have a feeling this fic is going to be extremely long :)
> 
> Happy reading, lovely people!!! :) <3

"You came."

Josie sounded slightly shocked and stared agape at Penelope from the grass.

"Of course I did, Jojo," Penelope smiled sadly. It didn't reach her eyes. "Were you expecting me not to?"

Josie fiddled with her fingers as if they had suddenly become the most interesting curiosities in the world.

"Well... You, uh, you seemed pretty upset, you know, before with the rabbit and I, uh..." Josie trailed off, as if saying the words would make it true.

Penelope waited patiently, toying with a loose thread in the hem of her sweater.

"I..." Josie began, "I thought you might hate me. Do you?"

"Do I what?"

"Do you... hate me?" Josie whispered the last part so softly it was nearly imperceptible.

Penelope decided to come closer; some things can't be said at a distance. She had been standing on the school's porch, but now made her way down the whitewashed wooden steps, stopping in front of the brunette. Penelope raised a hand to take Josie's, but thought better of it. She realised she had made the wrong decision when Josie's eyes widened, glossy and fearful.

"Jojo, I could never, ever hate you. Believe me, I've tried."

Josie nodded slowly, skeptically. Then, with a breath, she mutely changed the subject, reaching down to syphon magic from the earth. It took a few minutes to gather enough. A charged silence separated the two witches like frigates in fog. Each wanted to speak; neither knew what to say. When the last of the lime green magic flowed into her palm, Josie approached the tree line, motioning for Penelope to follow.

A large forest sprawled in all directions, encircling Beselare completely. A security measure of sorts, the forest was also a favoured hiking spot frequented by the students. 'Mirene's Forest,' they called it, after the wood nymph who, legend has it, turned into the oldest tree. A band of uncouth, arrogant human men had pursued her with intentions of keeping her captive--a prize pet. Mirene knew that if they caught her, she would never see her beloved hills again--never again bask in the hot afternoon sun, nor drink from the clear springs; To be captured by the men was to lose everything she loved in the world. So she became a tree so wide, so tall, so gnarled and root-anchored that they could never take her. Her bark broke their saws. Her roots thwarted their shovels. And under Mirene's protection, what once was merely a small wood among fielded hills grew into a magnificent forest, whose dense foliage became a haven for magical creatures and witches alike. At least, so the story goes.

A dirt path parted the vegetation. The path was by no means large, but certainly well-traveled. Josie placed her hand on a large oak to the left. She closed her eyes and focused, redirecting all of the energy she had syphoned into this tree, into it's roots, into all of the other trees along the path, then up, up, up into their leaves, into each and every vein.

Penelope gasped. The tree's crown began to glow a soft green, then it spread to the next tree and the next and the next until all the trees were luminous as far as Penelope could see. It looked like fire flies had made a village under every leaf; the light seemed to emanate from within.

"Jojo!" Penelope stared wide-eyed as Josie removed her palm from the bark.

"Let's walk?"

\---

"I didn't do much, really. The leaves in this forest already glow a little, so I gave them an energy boost," Josie shrugged.

Penelope continued to stare up at the canopy; she had stumbled on nearly every root and rock along the way, absorbed in studying the way the leaves' flesh glowed lighter than the veins.

"I know I have some... explaining to do," Josie began. "I didn't read your letters until yesterday. I didn't know you wrote them, actually, because I never read past the day you left."

"Why?"

"I missed you. I thought it would hurt more to read the red journal without you. I was wrong. I'm sorry. I would have responded in a heartbeat if I knew."

Silence.

"I, I thought you had moved on," said Penelope. It was morose and out of character--vulnerable. Penelope sounded like she was holding in tears.

"Oh, Penny." Josie's heart ached.

"I, well, you know how the other girls feel about me and I just, I don't know, I..." Penelope trailed off, but Josie knew what she meant.

Words couldn't express how Josie felt in that moment. There was no adequate way to explain how profound her sorrow was, so she took Penelope's hand and pulled her further into the forest.

\---

The pair settled at the base of Mirene's tree on pillowy moss-laden boulders. They sat in silence, a silence which was almost comfortable but not quite. Josie's fingers danced over the moss, while Penelope looked up at the tree above them. She could almost see how it resembled a woman: two arm-like branches splitting into leafy fingers, willow-ish leaves hanging around the trunk like thick, loose hair, roots like feet grasping at the boulders. Hmm.

"Sorry about your stuff," murmured Josie. "It's all in my desk, including your hairbrush." Josie carded her fingers through Penelope's hair without a thought, slowly working through some of the knots. Penelope stilled momentarily, then leaned into the touch. There was a fragile normalcy to the action. It was so caring and soft that Penelope felt she had to be gentle with it, like picking up a butterfly. Both sighed, content to let themselves have this moment of peace before the storm is really over.

"I don't know if things between us will be back to normal yet," said Penelope, "but we'll get there eventually. I felt so hurt for so long and that doesn't just go away. I'm glad you're here now, though. I love you, Jojo. I always will."

"I love you, too," responded Josie. It sounded more like a promise than a declaration of love. Josie rested her head in the curve of Penelope's neck while Penelope absentmindedly rubbed circles into Josie's shoulder with her thumb.


	11. Lions, And Tigers, And Bears...

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I'm a sucker for a good Wizard of Oz reference. That said, Josie and Penelope are still in the forest, but they're not alone... *dramatic music swells* dun dun DUUUUUUUUUUN!!!
> 
> S/O to Phineas and Ferb for teaching me what an aglet is!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter has been a long time coming. That is a nice way of saying that anxiety, prior obligations, college prep, and lethargy have come together to foil all my attempts at writing. That said, I WILL finish this story eventually. So, here's the next chapter.
> 
> And, as always, happy reading my lovely people!!!<3
> 
> (Disclaimer: All mythical creatures are taken from the internet, so if I screwed up on some of the details, please tell me and I will happily fix them :) And also, the spells are still random bullish*t that I come up with based on google translate ;) )

"Jojo?!"

"Mmm?" Josie questioned, languidly raising her head from its perch on Penelope's shoulder.

The luminescent trees were beginning to dim and the stars had come out exceptionally bright. Josie didn't know how long they had sat there. Probably an hour at least. Sitting there with Penelope felt so natural, she had almost fallen asleep. But her drowsiness vanished almost immediately when she saw the wide-eyed look of concern marring Penelope's features.

"Jojo, did you hear that?" Penelope half-whispered.

"Hear what?"

"I thought I heard something from the bushes over there-" Penelope pointed to their right. "Like something lost its footing and snapped a branch or something."

"Oh, I, I didn't hear that. I was, um, too focused on enjoying your company," Josie spoke with a blush. "But it is getting kind of late. We should probably start heading ba-"

A loud rustle. Leaves crunching. Hard.

"Okay, P, I definitely heard that."

"Yeah, no shit. What do you think it is?"

"It could be a lynx?" Josie asked hopefully.

"A what?" Penelope grew more alarmed. She didn't know what type of creature that was, but she hoped they wouldn't get to meet it.

"Basically a big cat. Pointy ear-tips, fluffy--essentially, a big danger-kitty," Josie elaborated, smirking slightly at her girlfriend--well, ex-girlfriend--ex-ish...

"Yeah, okay. Big cat. We can manage. We should probably be heading back now, anyway."

Josie nodded and got up, extending a hand to Penelope. It had to be past curfew by now and while new-Josie wasn't one for rules, she also wasn't one for detention. 

\---

As they walked along the moonlit path hand in hand, the trees almost completely dark, Penelope bumped their shoulders together softly.

"Yeah?" said Josie. 

"I was just thinking: It's just our luck that our first night back together and a massive non-magical cat comes to spoil it. It's kind of funny, in a way." 

"Yeah, I suppose it is," agreed Josie, "It's not spoiled, though--the evening--I'm having a really good time. I mean, it'd be cool if there wasn't probably a massive cat somewhere in these woods where we also are, but..." Josie pulled Penelope to a stop and turned to face her. "I've missed you so much and now we're here and I'm so scared that someone's going to wake me up and say it was all a dream." A single tear tracks down Josie's left cheek. When she continues speaking, it's quieter and far more vulnerable than Penelope thinks she's ever seen her. "I... I don't know if I could handle that--If this wasn't real and I-I wasn't here with you." 

For the entire duration of her speech, Josie had stared intently at Penelope's shoes; the intricate brogue of the leather; the soft, frayed fuzz of a lace that lost its aglet; a small scuff on the right toe. Some things are too sensitive to be said to a person's face. But then--then Penelope reaches up from Josie's peripheral vision to wipe the tear with the pad of her thumb. Penelope's hand lingers and Josie looks up through damp eyelashes. 

Penelope's eyes are glossy--somehow melancholy and happy all at once. 

"Oh, JoJo," a sigh. "I could never do that to you. Never, never. But if it was a dream," she caught Josie's gaze, "you could come and find me when you woke and I would be every bit as happy to see you as I am now, standing here." 

"Promise?" 

"I promise." 

Josie fell into Penelope, enveloping her in a brief, but bone-crushing, near-lethal hug. Then Josie pulled back, her arms still around Penelope's waist. It was too soon to kiss--it felt rushed and Josie didn't want that--so she brought their foreheads together, eyes tracking over each other's tear-stained cheeks. Both giggled a little bit, suddenly giddy at their togetherness. The tension from earlier--the past few days--the past few months--fell away. 

Then the leaves crunched again, far closer than the last time. And again. And again. 

"JoJo, what do we do? Do we make ourselves bigger? Smaller? Run?" 

"I don't know, Penny. I've never had to deal with this before. I think we're supposed to stand our ground; if we run, it'll chase us on instinct." 

"So we're just supposed to stand here and wait for it to EAT US?!" 

"Shhhhhhhh! I thought you were a cat person." 

"A SMALL cat person! Can this wait til later?" 

"You're right. Sorry." 

Another crunch. The potential-lynx was still lurking in the shadows, two or three trees off the path. Crunch. Crunch. Crunch. It prowled closer. Josie and Penelope turned towards the noise. 

"I read that if you encounter a wild animal, you shouldn't take your eyes off it. It would see that as an opportunity to attack," added Josie. 

"Y'know, somehow I don't think that's going to be a problem," said Penelope, eyes never straying from the woods. 

Crunch. Crunch. Crunch. 

A dog head, larger and more hideous than any they'd ever seen, came into view. Moonlight glinted off its drooling maw. Pasty grey skin drooped in some areas, while stretching taut in others. Jagged teeth protruded from the creature's mouth at all angles. It let out a menacing, throaty growl, and Josie turned slightly towards Penelope, eyes still fixed on the beast. 

"Not a lynx. I think it's definitely a good idea to run," she whispered with urgency. 

"CONGELO!" Both cast their hands at the creature, frost emanating from their palms; it would buy them time, but not much. 

Josie and Penelope sprinted, stumbling over errant roots and rocks in their path. The whole time, both kept their heads turned to look behind them, out of both fear and caution. 

\--- 

Upon reaching the edge of the school's lawn with no sign of the monster, both girls clutched their knees, breathing hard. 

"Fuck, fuck, fuck!" 

"What the hell was that?!" 

"I don't know!" 

A powerful roar shook leaves on the trees around them and then they could see the creature barreling towards them. They had an hundred yards--so maybe 15 seconds--lead. 

"The school has a protection spell on it! We just have to make it to the stairs!!" Penelope grabbed Josie's hand and practically dragged her across the grass, haphazardly firing spells over her shoulder. 

Nothing seemed to slow the creature down, though. It was at least ten feet tall and humanoid, though it ran on all fours like a hound. It's body rippled with gory, rope-like muscles and slabs of the same awful grey skin that composed its face. The creature's paucity of clothing only enhanced its disturbing appearance. And it was gaining on them by leaps and bounds. Ten yards from the stairs and the girls could feel its moist, clammy breath on the backs of their necks. Both picked up speed, running faster than they ever had before. 

But it wasn't enough. Just as Penelope was hauling them onto the first step, the monster caught Josie's wrist in a bruising grip. It's claw-like fingers dug into her fragile skin, tearing into it like crepe paper. Josie cried out. It only worsened as the creature pulled. Penelope tried every spell she knew--defence, offence, everything. None of it seemed to work, as they were all meant for human-sized beings, which this thing was clearly not. 

Then, out of the blue, just as Penelope feared she might lose Josie to the woods monster, it hopped back. The dog-faced thing released Josie's arm and clutched it's own, howling as if it had been burned. 

A stern, but clearly worried, female voice spoke from behind the traumatised pair, "I think you girls had better come inside. It seems we have much to discuss."


	12. We've Been Dealing With This For Quite Some Time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Who is this mystery person? What do they know? OooooOOOoooooh the suspense!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really struggled to write this chapter, as you may be able to tell. I've been struggling with abysmally low self esteem lately and it's wreaking havoc on my ability to write. It's just been one of those weeks, you know? But I am going to a cabin in the woods on monday and I am so excited and if I don't end up in a horror movie it's going to be a great vacation. I'm planning to update this story once every week, but my mental health is like that tower of terror ride (*really high* *really low* *sometimes screaming* etc), so only time will tell if I stick to the schedule.
> 
> Also, I think I might start a Hope/Lizzie companion fic to this one i.e. what they're doing in America while this mess is happening in Belgium. \\_(^.^)_/
> 
> Happy reading, lovely people : ) <3
> 
> As always, I adore your feedback and it is always, always, ALWAYS welcome and heartily appreciated!

_Why did bad news always seem to follow them?_

Josie and Penelope wondered this as they perched flightily in adjacent, overstuffed leather wingbacks.

 

In the time they had sat their, Josie syphoned magic and fixed her arm. It was still sore, but at least it no longer had a hole in it. Things had been worse. Like that time she almost died--well, time _s_.

 

Across the warmly lit room, the woman from the porch reclined tensely. She seemed carefully posed, the way one does when they have something unpleasant to share and are trying to put the other party at ease. It wasn't working. Gingerly, she laced her fingers together, resting them on the lip of her oblong, book-laden desk.

 

"There is no easy way to say this, but given both your histories at Salvatore, I believe you are prepared as anyone could hope to be," she sighed. "Miss Park, you may know me as Headmistress Berman, though I, regrettably, rarely venture among the pupils.

 

"And Miss Saltzman. My! How you've grown! You likely do not remember me--last time I saw you, you were three years old--the cheekiest little thing. Your father and I have been friends for many years.

 

"When we were children, my grandparents and I moved in next door to Alaric and his family. Rick and I saw each other at school, but I was so busy with coven obligations I didn't have time for non-magical friends. We only got to know each other when he met your mother."

 

"Caroline?" Josie piped in.

 

"No, sweetheart, your birth mother, Josette," she smiled sadly, "She was the loveliest witch of our year. Our families belonged to... _adjacent_ covens, you might say; Hers and ours were both small. They shared many of the same beliefs and traditions. Our elders educated us together to create a sense of community in spite of our few numbers. Your mother and I, we were thick as thieves.

 

"When Josette fell for Alaric, of course I had to get to know him. Absolutely nobody could be good enough for my best friend! But somehow he was exactly her equal--and unhateable, really," she smirked. "Rick and I became friends and when he founded Salvatore, I recruited many of his staff for the magical arts. Then I moved here to Belgium to oversee Beselare."

 

Josie looked positively enraptured, while Penelope sat patiently, waiting for the other shoe to drop.

 

The Headmistress sighs heavily, "And now about that monster in the woods. Your father warned me this might happen."

 

"What might happen?" Josie prompted.

 

"Monsters might be attracted to the Merge. It is very powerful, ancestral magic, you know; that sort of thing leaves a trace on anyone it touches, in this case yourself and your sister Elizabeth.

 

"Of course, the occurrences at Salvatore were not  _only_ related to your presence. That boy--what was his name?--also possessed a strong beacon for the occult. He acted as an amplifier, of sorts. The traces of the Merge were not enough to draw so many creatures on their own, but with him, well, you get the point, don't you?"

 

"That creature in the woods," asked Penelope, "What was it?"

 

"Ahh, yes. The ogre. People from Moldova and Romania would call it a 'Capcaun'. Nasty things. They tend to go after young women--often princesses--and try to kidnap them. The Capcaun is the embodiment of evil. I'm not actually sure what they do with their captives, but they probably intend to marry them or keep them prisoner."

 

"Hold on, neither of us is a princess. I know he wants the power of the merge, but he doesn't have the powers to syphon it. This just doesn't make sense!" Josie lamented.

 

"From my experience, the monsters don't exactly want to syphon the magic--not all of them do, at least. For most, it seems to be an instinctive urge, an attraction to the magic like moths to a light. They aren't conscious of  _why_ they want to reach you at all.

 

"As for princesses, you're co-heir to the Gemini coven, Josie. Doesn't that count?"

 

Penelope grew a shit-eating grin, "I always knew you were the fairest of them all, Jojo."

 

Josie turned beet red. "So what about the ogre? It's just going to wander around the woods, then? Until it gets me?"

 

"I have a friend in Germany who works with displaced magical creatures. I recall him recently having issues with the placement of a female ogre. I'm planning on giving him a call. Perhaps, if we pair them, they can live peacefully in the woods; no abductions, no problem," explained the headmistress.

 

At this, Penelope 'mhm'ed, nodding approvingly, "Shrek 5, I like it. So we get this ogre, set them up, and no more monsters?"

 

"Not exactly. They'll keep coming until we figure out how to stop them. Or how to stop the merge. They should be fewer and farther between since you and your sister are separated," she nodded at Josie. "Until further notice, I'll have to ask you not to leave the main building; it's for safety. I'm sure you can understand." Headmistress Berman stood and paced to the door.

"I'd say it's about time you headed off to bed, girls. We can talk more tomorrow--strategise, if you will."

 

"Goodnight, Mrs. Berman," smiled Josie.

 

"Good--"

 

Just as Penelope was about to follow Josie into the hall, the Headmistress placed a hand on her shoulder.

 

"Miss Park, the monsters here are different from the ones you faced at Salvatore. They are craftier and their cunning makes them dangerous. Do not stray from Josie's side. She is in far more danger than either of you realises. Understood?"

 

A moment's pause. Headmistress Berman's eyes searching Penelope's and vice versa, each trying to suss out a hint of falsehood in the other. Until finally...

 

"Understood. Goodnight, Mrs. Berman." And Penelope passed into the hall.


End file.
